wiping rain water off your
- Thread starter pingman
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Re: wiping rain water off your
doesn't mess up the paintwork.
but if you keep wiping and wiping, you'll slowly remove the layers of wax applied to your paintwork. don't believe, go apply your wax/sealant... any brand, meguiar's, zaino, glare etc then wash it twenty times in a row.......
if you have a nice coat of wax/sealant on it, you can wipe at the end of the day or once every 2 days without worrying that the rainwater will leave water marks, but if your protective coat has been worn thin by your incessant attempts to dry it, then the chances of developing permanent watermarks increases exponentially.
best solution: wax after you wipe of the rain water...... every single time.
most practical solution: wax once a month with a good product, wipe at the end of the day and pray for good weather.
doesn't mess up the paintwork.
but if you keep wiping and wiping, you'll slowly remove the layers of wax applied to your paintwork. don't believe, go apply your wax/sealant... any brand, meguiar's, zaino, glare etc then wash it twenty times in a row.......
if you have a nice coat of wax/sealant on it, you can wipe at the end of the day or once every 2 days without worrying that the rainwater will leave water marks, but if your protective coat has been worn thin by your incessant attempts to dry it, then the chances of developing permanent watermarks increases exponentially.
best solution: wax after you wipe of the rain water...... every single time.
most practical solution: wax once a month with a good product, wipe at the end of the day and pray for good weather.
Re: wiping rain water off your
err. since there is a layer of wax/sealant, then dont need to wipe already? since the wax/sealant job will protect against the dirt and acid rain drop, rite?
no wonder i see lots of car owners in carparks doing that these rainy day. really good workout huh for them since everyday is rainy day...
got something more time and resource effective?
err. since there is a layer of wax/sealant, then dont need to wipe already? since the wax/sealant job will protect against the dirt and acid rain drop, rite?
no wonder i see lots of car owners in carparks doing that these rainy day. really good workout huh for them since everyday is rainy day...
got something more time and resource effective?
Re: wiping rain water off your
Spot on bro. I was about to warn you about this. I'll normally hose down and wipe my car upon reaching home if I have the time. If I don't have the time or feeling too lazy, I'll just wait till the next car wash. If your car is constantly waxed, you don't have to worry to much about water marks as I believe the layer of wax on your car will prevent water marks from forming.pingman said:
Re: wiping rain water off your
its all about how clean the car actually is.
if it were raining big drops and I was actually going at a reasonable enough speed to "clean" the car, i would proceed with a wipedown,
if it were just drizzling and then I was caught in traffic and crowded roads, I won't take risks with grime that will scratch during a wipedown and will rinse/wash the car.
of course, a dedicated specialized wipedown cloth is recommended - leather chamois, waffle weave cotton or plush micro fibre preferred - allowing gentle action.
its all about how clean the car actually is.
if it were raining big drops and I was actually going at a reasonable enough speed to "clean" the car, i would proceed with a wipedown,
if it were just drizzling and then I was caught in traffic and crowded roads, I won't take risks with grime that will scratch during a wipedown and will rinse/wash the car.
of course, a dedicated specialized wipedown cloth is recommended - leather chamois, waffle weave cotton or plush micro fibre preferred - allowing gentle action.
Re: wiping rain water off your
speaking of cloths. lately i have been told by a relative of mine that he has got some super duper wax etc on his car. when it rain or car wash, he dont use cloths. just his naked hand (fingers and palm) to gently sweep the water off the car. !?! i was shocked. anyone heard of this myth?
speaking of cloths. lately i have been told by a relative of mine that he has got some super duper wax etc on his car. when it rain or car wash, he dont use cloths. just his naked hand (fingers and palm) to gently sweep the water off the car. !?! i was shocked. anyone heard of this myth?
Re: wiping rain water off your
not sure about PH man... i think it complicates matters.
this morning, saw some of those cars whom the owner did a wipedown, there are streak of dirt left over after drying up. it seems that the wipedown and the car isnt clean afterall drom the rain.
any comment from others?
not sure about PH man... i think it complicates matters.
this morning, saw some of those cars whom the owner did a wipedown, there are streak of dirt left over after drying up. it seems that the wipedown and the car isnt clean afterall drom the rain.
any comment from others?
Re: wiping rain water off your
Done some study on rain water quality, it's pretty pure and pH level ranges from 5 ~ 5.7 freshly collected. After a while it rises a little towards neutral. You can consider it to be slightly acidic. Rain water samples were mainly collected around the East & South East. Hardness level hardly reach 10 mg/l and TDS ranges < 40 mg/l.
LSI and RSI (water indexes) indicates that its corrosive in nature but I won't consider it alarming with regards to car metal surfaces unless, your paintwork is chipped exposing bare metal. The samples are collected straight from above and its quality are anticipated to be vastly different from those when you are driving on the road due to tyre spray etc. I have not examine any of these samples.
Done some study on rain water quality, it's pretty pure and pH level ranges from 5 ~ 5.7 freshly collected. After a while it rises a little towards neutral. You can consider it to be slightly acidic. Rain water samples were mainly collected around the East & South East. Hardness level hardly reach 10 mg/l and TDS ranges < 40 mg/l.
LSI and RSI (water indexes) indicates that its corrosive in nature but I won't consider it alarming with regards to car metal surfaces unless, your paintwork is chipped exposing bare metal. The samples are collected straight from above and its quality are anticipated to be vastly different from those when you are driving on the road due to tyre spray etc. I have not examine any of these samples.
Re: wiping rain water off your
Heard from the folks at the SFC that it is better to leave the car alone after it rain as wiping it will cause the fine dirts particles to cause swirl marks and fine scratches. Normally i will leave the car alone till the next car wash.
U guys have better suggesstion?
Heard from the folks at the SFC that it is better to leave the car alone after it rain as wiping it will cause the fine dirts particles to cause swirl marks and fine scratches. Normally i will leave the car alone till the next car wash.
U guys have better suggesstion?
Re: wiping rain water off your
I feel that the primary reason for not wiping rain water off your car after driving around is due to dirt/grit that you pick up. Wiping can induce fine scratches because it's abrasive when the dirt is picked up by the cloth. This is if the car surface is not clean - and in our daily driving, we know how fast cars get dirty - esp if you drive a dark colored car.
If you need to wipe, basically don't wipe hard as though you're wiping a window. keke. A good routine would be a highly absorbant cloth, e.g. (chamois/ or similiar large drying cloth) - followed by a second wipe with micro-fibre towel. The first time is to absorb bulk of the moisture so you reduce the number of reptitions to wipe, the second wipe is basically to prevent streaking. Micro-fibre cloths are generally deemed to be safer by trapping dirt within it's weaves so that contact with the paint surface is minimised.
Personally, I'd only wipe the horizontal surfaces (hood/boot) and maybe the upper portion of doors if I've just waxed my car or if the surface is still quite clean. Lower regions pick up too much grit to risk.
Poor wiping/drying methods can be worse than poor washing methods.
I feel that the primary reason for not wiping rain water off your car after driving around is due to dirt/grit that you pick up. Wiping can induce fine scratches because it's abrasive when the dirt is picked up by the cloth. This is if the car surface is not clean - and in our daily driving, we know how fast cars get dirty - esp if you drive a dark colored car.
If you need to wipe, basically don't wipe hard as though you're wiping a window. keke. A good routine would be a highly absorbant cloth, e.g. (chamois/ or similiar large drying cloth) - followed by a second wipe with micro-fibre towel. The first time is to absorb bulk of the moisture so you reduce the number of reptitions to wipe, the second wipe is basically to prevent streaking. Micro-fibre cloths are generally deemed to be safer by trapping dirt within it's weaves so that contact with the paint surface is minimised.
Personally, I'd only wipe the horizontal surfaces (hood/boot) and maybe the upper portion of doors if I've just waxed my car or if the surface is still quite clean. Lower regions pick up too much grit to risk.
Poor wiping/drying methods can be worse than poor washing methods.
Re: wiping rain water off your
Even better if you have a hose / bottle of water, gently stream the water and the beads will sheet off. No need to wipe.
If the wax has good water repelling properties, then the water will bead off.pingman said:
Even better if you have a hose / bottle of water, gently stream the water and the beads will sheet off. No need to wipe.
If the car wasn't completely dry, streaks will form - even if the car is quite clean. The wet surface will attract dirt from the environment if left for long enough.pingman said:
